Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

Hebrews 13:3

New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures
- 3 Keep in mind those in prison,*+ as though you were imprisoned with them,+ and those being mistreated, as if you were suffering with them.*

Hebrews 13:3

The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures
- 3 μιμνήσκεσθε Be YOU keeping in mind τῶν of the δεσμίων bound (ones) ὡς as συνδεδεμένοι, having been bound with, τῶν of the (ones) κακουχουμένων being badly treated ὡς as καὶ also αὐτοὶ very (ones) ὄντες being ἐν in σώματι. body.

Hebrews 13:3

New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures—With References
- 3 Keep in mind those in prison bonds+ as though YOU have been bound with them,+ and those being ill-treated,+ since YOU yourselves also are still in a body.

Hebrews 13:3

The Bible in Living English
- 3 Remember those in prison, as being fellow-prisoners; those in hardship, as being in a body yourselves.

Hebrews 13:3

American Standard Version
- 3 Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; them that are illtreated, as being yourselves also in the body.

Hebrews 13:3

The Emphasized Bible
- 3 Bear in mind them who are in bonds As having become jointly bound,—Them who are suffering ill-treatment As being yourselves also in the body.

Hebrews 13:3

King James Version
- 3 Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.

Hebrews Study Notes—Chapter 13

New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (Study Edition)
- 13:3
  
  Keep in mind those in prison: The Hebrew Christians had already shown sympathy for “those in prison” (lit., “the bound ones”). (See study note on Heb 10:34.) Here Paul exhorts fellow believers to continue doing so. Paul himself had been imprisoned numerous times and had been brutally mistreated. (Ac 16:22, 24, 37; 2Co 11:23-25) He also knew that the help, comfort, and prayers of fellow Christians meant a great deal to prisoners. (Heb 13:19 and study note; compare 2Ti 1:16-18.) Even a writer of the second century C.E. (Lucian) who was critical of Christians acknowledged that they would visit fellow believers in prison, bring them meals, and encourage them by reading and discussing the Scriptures.
  
  in prison: As Paul knew well, Christians who were imprisoned for their faith had to endure inhumane treatment. Prisons were usually packed well beyond reasonable capacity, poorly ventilated, unsanitary, and dark. They might be bitterly cold in the winter and stifling hot in the summer. Most prisoners had to sleep on the floor, often in chains. (Ac 12:6; compare Ac 16:23, 24.) Because they were frequently deprived of food and water, they depended on friends and relatives to provide them with life’s necessities. (Php 2:25; 4:18; 2Ti 1:16 and study note, 17; 4:13; see Media Gallery, “Bring the Cloak”; “Paul Is Imprisoned but Unconquered.”) Thus, it is no wonder that Paul urged fellow Christians to keep them in mind.
  
  as if you were suffering with them: A more literal translation of this phrase is “as you yourselves also are in the body.” This expression seems to parallel the first part of the verse, where Paul urges his readers to keep remembering imprisoned fellow believers “as though [they] were imprisoned with them.” Here Paul is urging his readers to show “fellow feeling” for mistreated Christians by imagining how those readers would feel if they themselves—in their own bodies—were being mistreated. (1Pe 3:8 and study note; 1Co 12:26) This counsel was timely, for in the first century C.E., many Christians were being persecuted for their faith.—Ac 14:22; 1Th 3:4; 1Pe 5:8-10.